Nice Guys Finish Last
by Kayley Laskitt
Summary: He’s had a crush on her for ages, and now the secret is out. Now, with the help of his friends, he's determined to get the girl - even if it means doing things he never even dreamed of. Indigoshippy. (Hiroshi/Richie x Kasumi/Misty)
1. Admittance Is The First Step

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

---------------------

****

Chapter 1 - Admittance Is the First Step

Shigeru looked pained – really pained. The expression on his face was almost exactly like the one he'd worn when Satoshi had accidentally – _accidentally_ – run over his foot earlier that year. 

Meters away, a dark-haired angel screeched her pretty little lungs out and threw herself on the tiles below her, pounding her chubby little fists on the ground. 

Shigeru's expression changed to the one he'd worn when he'd found out that Satoshi was in hospital because Kasumi made him drink paint. An unusually amusing hybrid of horror and detachment. 

"I can't do this," he stated firmly, stepping away from the west-end entrance to the Tokiwa Mall. "I may be with a guy, but that does _not_ mean I have to try to fit some stupid stereotype and start _clothes shopping_." He said the last two words with a shudder.

Satoshi's hands set impatiently on his hips and he eyed Shigeru sharply. "Oh, for God's sake, Shigeru," he said exasperatedly. "You and I both know exactly how this is going to go. You'll refuse, I'll whine and eventually you'll give in. Why don't you just save us all the time and give in now?"

Shigeru flushed with the embarrassing realisation that not only was Satoshi absolutely right, but that he was absolutely whipped. Mumbling under his breath, he followed Satoshi into the Tokiwa Mall, Hiroshi right behind him. 

"Observe Hiroshi," Satoshi said authoritatively, spinning to face his two companions. "I'm sure he doesn't jump at the prospect of shopping, but he doesn't complain."

Shigeru rolled his eyes. "Well, obviously Hiroshi's the perfect guy," he retorted sarcastically, arms folded. "Why aren't you with him?"

Satoshi waved a dismissive hand. "Please. We all know Hiroshi doesn't have hormones."

It was Hiroshi's turn to flush. Unfortunately, his complexion was fairer than Shigeru's and his blush was more prominent – coincidentally, almost exactly like Kasumi's Maybelline Express Blush in Cherry Blossom - leaving him open to attack.

Tormenting Hiroshi fell somewhere between feeding his ego and training Pokemon on Shigeru's list of hobbies. 

Shigeru slung an arm around Hiroshi's shoulders, who was fervently wishing he was anywhere but the Tokiwa Mall at this point. "Now, now, Hiroshi," he said, in a veiled mockery that was so subtle only few would catch on to it. "You've obviously repressed your hormones for some psychologically damaging reason. Are you gay? Because you can tell us, you know that?"

"Shigeru," Satoshi warned. 

Hiroshi took the opportunity to wriggle free from Shigeru's grasp. "As much as fun it would be to stand around and discuss my sexuality," he said dryly. "We're here for a reason, remember? Kasumi's birthday?"

"Right." Shigeru rolled his eyes, which was something that was also featured on his list of hobbies. "Kasumi. My most favourite person in the whole, wide world!"

Satoshi, who knew that Shigeru actually enjoyed his and Kasumi's love/hate relationship but would die before admitting it, rolled his own eyes, grabbed Shigeru by the hand and dragged him to the escalators. 

As they headed up to level two, Hiroshi leaned against the rail of the escalator and eyed Satoshi. "So, do we know what we're supposed to be getting her?"

Satoshi jumped off at the top and nearly tripped over the floor. "She told my mom that she needs a new swimsuit," he informed him as he and Shigeru stepped off the escalator. 

Hiroshi, who had thought they'd be buying her something harmless like a book or jewellery, fought down a blush. "A swimsuit?" he echoed, following Satoshi as he weaved his way through the crowds with a little too much ease. "We're buying Kasumi a swimsuit?"

Shigeru laughed. "Hey, calm down, Hiroshi," he taunted. "It's not that bad. You probably like shopping for women's –"

"Shigeru!"

Shigeru fell silent at Satoshi's reprimand, then winked and added quietly. "You never know. If you're _really_ lucky, maybe Satoshi will try it on for you."

Satoshi stopped walking abruptly, so abruptly that Shigeru walked into him. Satoshi turned and stabbed a warning finger at him. "I'm warning you, Shigeru. Stop picking on Hiroshi."

Shigeru seriously invaded Satoshi's personal space. "Or what?"

Satoshi lifted an eyebrow. "Remember the time you put a Caterpie in Kasumi's bed?"

Hiroshi didn't remember what Satoshi's punishment had been but Shigeru clearly did. He stepped away from Satoshi and nodded. "Right." He glanced at Hiroshi. "Sorry."

He actually sounded sorry, which meant that whatever Satoshi's punishment was, it was unusually cruel. 

Satisfied, Satoshi led them into a surf shop. Hiroshi glanced around at the masses of swimsuits in the store and turned red, Shigeru alternated between studying a pair of boardshorts on display and studying Satoshi with a speculative smirk on his face, and Satoshi began flicking through a rack of bikinis. He pulled a folded scrap of paper from the back pocket of his cords and studied it. 

"My mom said she wants a bikini," Satoshi told Hiroshi. "But one of those triangle ones, you know? And she's a size four, so get looking."

"You asked her what size she is?" Shigeru asked, approaching the two with a pair of the boardshorts in Satoshi's size dangling from his left hand. 

Satoshi snorted. "Hell no. I value my life. I went through her stuff."

Shigeru rolled his eyes. "Much better."

Satoshi ignored him, flicked through the rack and pulled out a red set printed with yellow, blue and white stars. "What do you think of these?"

Shigeru shook his head. "No way. The top's okay, but those boy-leg bottoms are _so_ not Kasumi. Her ass is too small, and Hiroshi, why are you looking at me like that?" he exploded. Before Hiroshi could speak, he glared. "I have a sister, okay? There's a dozen chick magazines around my house all the time. It has nothing to do with the whole gay-cliché thing."

Hiroshi took the rare opportunity to turn the table and taunt Shigeru. "Right," he drawled. "I am so sure."

Satoshi put the swimsuit back on the rack and faced Shigeru, arms folded over his chest. "Well, since you're our resident expert, why don't you pick one for her?"

Shigeru made a face but flicked through the rack anyway. He pulled out several swimsuits and handed them to Satoshi. He worked his way down the entire rack and by the time he was finished, Satoshi was nothing more than a head of spiky hair drowning in a sea of brightly coloured Lycra. 

"Hmm," Shigeru said. "We may need to narrow it down somewhat."

Some were set aside being deemed too skanky', others were deemed too not-Kasumi'. In the end, Satoshi was left holding two – one was plain yellow edged in white, the other striped in shades of blue and green. "So, which one do you guys like?" Shigeru asked, frowning thoughtfully. 

Satoshi shrugged. "Both, I guess."

Hiroshi angled his head. "The blue and green one," he decided. "It kinda matches the colour of Kasumi's eyes, you know, that really gorgeous bluey-green that's just like the colour of the water in Hanada Bay . . . "

He trailed off and blinked. He hadn't really just said that out loud, had he?

Judging by the way that Shigeru and Satoshi were gaping at him, he had.


	2. The Road to Recovery

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

---------------------

Chapter 2 - The Road to Recovery

"Uh . . . so I hear," he added lamely. 

It didn't take long for Shigeru's gape to evolve into a fully-fledged smirk. "Well, well, well," he drawled, his smirk growing. "This is an unexpected turn of events."

Hiroshi wondered how much damage it was possible to inflict on another person with a coat hanger. 

"Kasumi?" Satoshi said, shaking his head in amazement. "You've got a thing for Kasumi? Man, I never saw that one coming."

Shigeru shrugged his broad shoulders. "I can see it, I guess," he said doubtfully. "She _is_ pretty . . . if you're into that. And she can be kind of nice when she's not busy being a heinous bitch and all which, granted, is most of the time . . ."

"Yeah, that's what I want to hear, Shigeru," Hiroshi said sarcastically. "You slagging off the girl I've had a crush on for four years."

"Four years?" Shigeru and Satoshi hollered, getting the attention of anyone in a five-mile radius of Tokiwa. 

"Oh, hell," Hiroshi muttered. How was it possible that he'd just undone four years of fastidious secret keeping in the space of two minutes?

Suddenly, Shigeru laughed, catching both Satoshi and Hiroshi off guard. "All this time!" he laughed. "I thought you were either some kind of freak without any testosterone or gay . . . and you were just crushing on Kasumi!" Shigeru found humour in this where Hiroshi found none and continued to laugh loudly.

"Yeah, that's _real_ funny," Hiroshi muttered.

Shigeru found Hiroshi's annoyance even funnier and laughed some more.

"Okay," Satoshi said with a sigh, wrapping his fingers around Shigeru's wrist and pulling him to the counter. "Leave the guy alone, alright?" He tossed the swimsuit of choice on the counter and waited for the overly thin salesgirl to wrap it up. "It's not his fault that's he's got a thing for Kasumi. You of all people should know we have no control over that kind of thing."

Shigeru grinned, pinched Satoshi's side and grinned some more at the indignant squeak his action elicited. 

Hiroshi sighed and handed a credit card to the waiting salesgirl, signed for the swimsuit and accepted the brightly coloured plastic bag she handed him. 

"You guys owe me," he groused as they left the store, not because he cared about the money but because he felt like bitching.

Shigeru looked thoughtful — which was, as a general rule, a bad sign. "Hmm. I could pay you back. Or I could not pay you back and instead promise to not tell Kasumi that you've been pining for her for four long years."

Hiroshi spun around. "Christ, Satoshi, what do you see in this guy?" he exploded. 

Satoshi looked thoughtful — which was, as a general rule, a rare thing. "Can I get back to you on that one?"

Shigeru scowled.

Shaking his head, Hiroshi marched to the escalators, down to the ground floor, through the west-end entrance and straight to his silver Vectra that was parked in Lot C, the whole time ignoring the way Satoshi and Shigeru were laughing at him.

"Shotgun!" Satoshi hollered, racing around to the passenger side of Hiroshi's car, as though he thought Shigeru might steal the coveted front seat from him. 

Shigeru, who couldn't care less where he sat, shrugged and got in the back. 

Hiroshi slid into the driver's seat and pushed his key in the ignition. One twist and it purred like a Nyansu. He smiled a little, patted the dash. He loved his car. Almost as much as he —

"So . . . " Shigeru was in the middle seat, elbows rested on Satoshi and Hiroshi's seats. His smirk was wide and irritating. "Let's talk, Hiroshi. Let's talk about you and Kasumi."

Hiroshi remained silent, and peeled out of the Tokiwa Mall parking lot, praying he could get back to Masara without killing Shigeru. Satoshi would never forgive him.

"There is no Hiroshi and Kasumi," Satoshi pointed out, charmingly blunt. He paused. "Yet."

Hiroshi, who knew Satoshi like the back of his proverbial hand, shook his head sharply as soon as the words left his mouth. "Oh, no," he stated firmly. "Don't you even think about getting all matchmaker on me. This is not for you two to screw up. That is a job reserved especially for me, thank you very much."

Shigeru laughed. "Hey, Hiroshi, is the glass half-empty or half-full?"

Hiroshi irritably changed lanes. "I don't know, Shigeru," he responded sarcastically. "Is your head half-empty or half-full?"

Hiroshi was not exactly known for being snappish. Shigeru was taken aback for a second before grinning. "Well, looks like Kasumi's a sore spot for someone," he mocked.

"Never piss off the guy who's driving," Hiroshi advised. 

Satoshi and Shigeru seemed to take this into consideration and fell silent for at least half a mile. Hiroshi felt his nerves climb down from the ceiling. Then —

"Have you ever tried anything on her?" Satoshi asked. 

Hiroshi groaned. "No," he said tightly. "I have not. Can we please drop the whole thing?"

"Four years and you haven't tried a thing?" Satoshi pressed, clearly ignoring Hiroshi's request of dropping the topic. "How do you not go insane?"

Shigeru snorted. "Who says he hasn't?"

Hiroshi clenched his jaw. He was not enjoying this.

They passed another half mile in silence. When the silence was broken, it was, surprisingly, broken by Hiroshi.

"Do you guys think I have a chance?" he asked resignedly, tapping fingers on the steering wheel to an imaginary beat.

Satoshi twisted in his seat to glance at Shigeru before shrugging slightly. "I wouldn't really know, Hiroshi. I mean, she's never said anything but you know Kasumi. There's a whole lot going on there that she doesn't talk about."

"If you want _my _opinion," Shigeru began, his tone dry and blunt. Hiroshi wondered whether he should duct tape his mouth shut before it was too late. "Kasumi doesn't see you as anything more than a friend because you're too much of a pussy."

Without warning, the car turned sharply onto the side of the road and stopped harshly, throwing everything forward slightly. Hiroshi barely noticed it as he tore off his seat belt and twisted to face Shigeru, eyes narrowed. "_Excuse_ me?" he demanded.

Shigeru didn't look in the slightest bit apologetic. He lifted his shoulders in a careless shrug. "You are," he insisted. "Listen to yourself." He cleared his throat, put on a whiny, high pitched voice and clasped his hands next to his heart. "Her eyes are just the colour of the water in Hanada Bay." Shigeru dropped both the voice and his hands. "You think a girl like Kasumi finds that impressive?"

Hiroshi felt himself colouring. 

"Look, Hiroshi," Shigeru said, less harshly. "You're a nice guy, but you're the typecast quiet guy. I'm the jerk, Satoshi's the airhead, Kasumi's the brat and you're the quiet, nice guy who gets socks for his birthday and actually likes it. You're the guy who the girls forget is actually a guy because you're so darn cuddly. You're —"

"Okay, okay." Hiroshi interrupted Shigeru, his brow knitted. "I get the idea. And I can see that maybe — _maybe_ — you've got a point for once. So what the hell do I about it?" He paused. "Presuming I want to do something about it."

Shigeru snorted. "You could start by hitting me for calling you a pussy."

Of course it was ridiculous. Hiroshi had never hit anyone in his life, outside of his older brother, but that didn't really count because that was survival. And surely Shigeru was just joking, because what guy in his right mind would invite someone to smack them?

But the guy _did_ seem to know what he was talking about. And Hiroshi _did_ want to stop being the nice guy. And he really was pissed off that Shigeru had called him a pussy.

So he shot his arm out and punched him square in the jaw. The crack of knuckle against jaw was audible and Hiroshi was surprised that he actually enjoyed hitting Shigeru right across his smug, mocking face.

"Holy shit," Shigeru managed, holding his jaw. He looked up, an odd mixture of surprise, pain and grudging respect in his dark eyes. "I didn't think you would actually do it. How do you feel?"

Hiroshi shook out his fist, enjoying the slight twinge in his knuckles. "Pretty good, actually," he admitted. 

Shigeru held a hand out to Hiroshi — the one that wasn't holding his jaw. "Welcome to the road to recovery."

Satoshi eyed them and shook his head. "You're both as crazy as one another," he stated. 

Hiroshi grinned a little at Satoshi's words, then looked at the hand Shigeru was holding out to him. He took it. And he shook it firmly. 

Shigeru grinned, wincing a little as his bruising jaw protested. "Hope you're ready for this."


	3. Making Cuddly Toys Sneer

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

---------------------

****

Chapter 3 - Making Cuddly Toys Sneer

"Here." Hiroshi tossed a bag of frozen peas to Shigeru. "This'll help."

Shigeru nodded and held the peas to his jaw. Hiroshi, whose post-hit high was starting to wear down into mild guilt, sat at the kitchen table across from Satoshi.

"Stop feeling guilty," Shigeru commanded, his words mildly muffled by frozen produce. 

Hiroshi had the bizarre sensation that Shigeru was inside his head, which was a frightening concept. 

"I'm not guilty," he lied.

Satoshi saw straight through him like he was made out of cling wrap and snorted a laugh.

"Here's the thing," Shigeru began authoritatively, resting his elbow on the table. "Now, don't get me wrong. I like Kasumi and all —"

"Ah ha!" Satoshi crowed triumphantly. 

Shigeru shot him a look. "Occasionally," he continued coolly, covering up his near slip. "But as you know, we fight a lot. Do you know why?"

Hiroshi lifted an eyebrow and rocked back in his chair. "Because you're both as pig-headed and hot-tempered as one another?"

Satoshi laughed. Shigeru snowled — his very own unique cross between a sneer and a scowl that only he could achieve. "Aside from that," he said dryly. "I fight with Kasumi because she is absolutely freaking insane."

Hiroshi's eyebrows drew together slightly. He opened his mouth to protest but Shigeru stopped him, holding up a hand.

"Before you get all defensive, think about it," Shigeru advised. "How many girls do you know who would make their best friend drink paint and then laugh hysterically about it?"

Hiroshi considered this. He had a point.

Satoshi tipped too far back in his chair and would have fallen if Shigeru hadn't grabbed the back of the chair. "In Kasumi's defence," he began. "She didn't exactly _make_ me drink the paint. It was more of a suggestion."

Hiroshi couldn't resist cracking a grin at Satoshi. "How exactly did that happen?" he asked, genuinely curious. "Did she just say, Hey Satoshi, how's about you drink this paint?'"

Satoshi rolled his eyes. "No," he said as if it were obvious. "Don't be ridiculous." He shrugged slightly. "She said that when you stirred the paint really fast, it looked like a milkshake, and she dared me to see whether it tasted like one or not."

Shigeru's head was in his hands, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

"What are you laughing at?"

The three of them looked up to see Shigeru's older sister Nanami standing in the doorway, thin arms folded over her pale green ballerina tee. She was a dark-haired, dark-eyed pixie who looked so much more innocent than she was. 

Shigeru, still trying to look like he wasn't laughing in the vain hope that Satoshi hadn't noticed, shook his head wordlessly.

Nanami looked skyward — as though asking the heavens why she'd ended up with such a brother — then turned on her heel and left.

Satoshi clipped Shigeru over the ear and he straightened, forcing down the laughter. 

"What can I say?" Satoshi shrugged. "I'm open to suggestion."

Shigeru smirked, his eyebrows quirked suggestively and Hiroshi leaned across the table and clamped a hand over his mouth. "I don't want to hear it," he told him wearily.

Satisfied that Shigeru wasn't about to make some suggestive comment poorly veiled as humour, Hiroshi sat back. 

"Shigeru's right," Satoshi said, picking up the earlier line of conversation. "I love Kasumi and all, but you can't ignore the fact that she's seriously crazy." At Hiroshi's stubbornly doubtful face, Satoshi lifted a dark eyebrow. "How about the time she jumped on a bus just to see where it went? It took my four hours to find her. Or the stupid game she invented where she jumps off Shigeru's roof into the pool?"

"Which wouldn't be so bad if our house wasn't a split-level," Shigeru added with a sigh, most likely thinking of how Kenji had broken his ankle last summer.

"Or the time she —"

"Okay, okay!" Hiroshi exclaimed, clamping his hands over his ears and as a result speaking louder than he intended. "I get the point! I _know_ Kasumi's crazy — that's part of the reason I like her so much. What's that got to do with me?"

Shigeru and Satoshi exchanged glances. 

"Well," Satoshi said with a mildly apologetic shrug. "Kasumi's crazy. And you're not."

Truer words were never spoken. Hiroshi was about as calm and rational as they got. His hair could be on fire and he wouldn't raise his voice. That was just the way he was.

Shigeru, who was prone to bluntness, spoke. "Look, here's Kasumi, running around stealing mailboxes and pushing people into lakes or whatever the hell she does, right? Do you think she's going to notice some guy who's busy making cuddly toys jealous with his overwhelming niceness?"

Hiroshi was mildly surprised that someone telling him he was nice could piss him off so immensely. 

"So what do you suggest?" Hiroshi asked Shigeru, his words slightly sardonic. 

Shigeru grinned broadly at Hiroshi's question, locked his fingers behind his head and leaned back. "I think you should be a little more like me."

His grin fell as Satoshi and Hiroshi howled with laughter.

"What?" he demanded, sitting up again.

Hiroshi forced a straight face, arranged his face into a disdainful sneer and said, "_My _ego can fill the Grand Canyon. I bet yours can't."

Satoshi turned blue with laughter at the way Hiroshi managed to look alarmingly like Shigeru. 

Shigeru, irritatingly aware that they would be making fun of his words for months if he didn't step in, snowled. 

"What I meant," he said, his voice somewhat annoyed. "Was that you need to break out of your mould and be more of a badass if you want to get Kasumi's attention."

Hiroshi suddenly seemed less interested in mocking Shigeru. "Really?"

Shigeru, nodded and pounded his fist on the table to make his point. "Oh, yeah! If you want her, you gotta be just as in-your-face as she is."

Hiroshi doubted anyone, especially him, could be as in-your-face as Kasumi.

"Well . . . where do I start?" Hiroshi asked uncertainly.

"In order to be a badass dude, you gotta have a badass move," Satoshi quoted solemnly.

Hiroshi and Shigeru stared blankly.

"What?" Satoshi shrugged. "That's what it said on the pro-wrestling channel."

Shigeru sighed, shook his head. Then he turned his attention back to Hiroshi, who was waiting nervously. Shigeru's dark eyes skated over Hiroshi, taking in the neat, casual slacks and polo shirt he was wearing. A mildly amused smile touched Shigeru's lips.

"You could start with your clothes," he suggested lightly.

Self-conscious, Hiroshi looked down at himself. "What's wrong with my clothes?" he asked defensively.

Shigeru snorted with a little too much derision, most likely as payback for Hiroshi mocking him earlier. "Nothing . . . nothing at all. Just say this for me, okay? I want to complete the picture." He cleared his throat, batted his eyelashes. "Hi, would you like a copy of _The Watchtower_?"

Hiroshi scowled. "Okay," he conceded reluctantly. "_Maybe_ I could stand to get some new clothes or something . . . " He trailed off and grinned suddenly, tauntingly. "Does that mean we're going shopping again?"

Shigeru snorted. "Like hell." He stood up, disappeared and returned with a kicking, biting dark-haired angel in green. "Ookido Nanami," he said, as if they didn't know who she was. "My oh-so-charming sister and your personal fashion consultant."

Satoshi, who had known Nanami since he was knee-high to a Pikachuu, laughed, leaned across the table and warned him, "Keep on guard when you're shopping with her."

Hiroshi's brow knitted in concern at Satoshi's serious tone. "Why?'

"Because," Satoshi hissed. "She's a fashion Nazi." He glanced over nervously, to see Nanami whispering fervently to Shigeru. "A _violent_ fashion Nazi."

Hiroshi's lips twitched slightly, partly because of Satoshi's tone, partly because he doubted the petite girl could cause him harm. "Satoshi . . . first of all, if she's such a Nazi, the whole violence thing is a given. Second of all, look at her. She's tiny. She's pretty cute, actually. If I wasn't so hung up on Kasumi, I might be interested in her."

His words were punctuated by a loud crash. Satoshi and Hiroshi turned to see Nanami pin her younger brother to the wall, still whispering furiously at him.

Satoshi raised an eyebrow at Hiroshi. Hiroshi swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. Nanami didn't seem so sweet and pretty now.

Shigeru uttered something Hiroshi couldn't hear, and seconds later Nanami let him go, nodding slowly. "Okay," she hissed, stabbing a French manicured finger at Shigeru. "But this is not for you. I am doing this for Hiroshi." She cast a glance at him. "Lord knows the guy needs a little help in the fashion department."

Satoshi shot Hiroshi a look that clearly said, See?'

"Alright," Nanami said briskly, shaking her ponytail. "Let's go."

Her piercing eyes were directed at Hiroshi, her delicate features arranged in a definite don't-waste-my-time' look. The words fashion Nazi' floated through Hiroshi's mind.

"Uh . . . where to?" he asked, trying to sound as though she didn't scare him, because that probably wasn't a step in the direction of badass. 

"Tokiwa Mall," she said crisply, before turning and holding her hand out to her brother. "Give me your keys," she instructed. At his wariness, she heaved a sigh. "Don't screw with me, okay? I'm doing _you_ the favour and I don't have a car."

Shigeru eyed his sister dubiously. "You _would_ have a car if you hadn't impaled a taxi with it," he pointed out.

Satoshi muttered something that sounded very much like, Oh, hell'. 

"Ah, it's okay," Hiroshi interrupted awkwardly. "I have a car. We can take that."

Nanami stopped cornering her brother and nodded. "Okay. That's fine. Let's go."

She clamped delicate fingers around Hiroshi's wrist and towed him outside. On his way out, he caught Satoshi's eye.

"Good luck," he mouthed.

Hiroshi suppressed a groan. He had a feeling he'd be needing it.


	4. Hard Knock Life

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 4 - Hard Knock Life

"This is the _stupidest _idea you have ever come up with," Hiroshi hissed. "And that's saying a lot, looking at your track record."

A four-hour trip into the purgatory and hell that was shopping with Nanami had successfully converted Hiroshi's desire to win over Kasumi by any means necessary into homicidal irritation and the decision that he didn't _really_ like Kasumi that much. 

Unperturbed, Shigeru eyed Hiroshi, a rare glint of approval in his dark eyes. "Very nice," he pronounced. "One thing I can say for my sister is that she has fantastic fashion sense." He smiled. "But then, some things are hereditary."

"Unusual cruelty, for a start," Hiroshi muttered, rubbing the bruise on his forearm he'd somehow sustained at Tokiwa Mall.

Shigeru smiled fondly. "Yes. I'm so proud of her."

Satoshi reached out to adjust Hiroshi's shirt; Hiroshi slapped his hand away irritably. Too much caffeine had combined with too much Nanami to create a very jumpy Hiroshi.

"Trust me. You look hot," Satoshi assured him with a little too much credibility.

"Hey!" Shigeru protested. He narrowed his eyes at Satoshi. "You can look, but you can't touch," he warned.

"Of _course_ he looks hot." The voice was lazily exasperated. Nanami stood near the doorway, hands in the pockets of her Levis. 

Hiroshi instinctively hid behind Satoshi.

"I chose the clothes, didn't I?" She wandered over, taking her time, narrow hips swaying ever so slightly. Nanami lifted her chin at her brother. "I thought he was going to go see Kasumi. Why is he still here trying to hide behind you?"

Sheepish, Hiroshi stepped away from his second-rate hiding place. 

"He's scared," Satoshi informed her cheerfully. "I think he may lose control of his bladder any second now."

Shigeru snorted with amusement.

"Scared, huh?" Nanami stepped closer to Hiroshi, her dark eyes not giving a thing away, which was probably the scariest thing about her. 

"Uh, kinda," Hiroshi admitted.

"Scared out of his mind!" Satoshi contributed sunnily.

Hiroshi barely heard him — he was too busy watching helplessly as Nanami slowly but surely backed him into a corner. When his back hit the wall, he instinctively searched for some kind of exit. A door. A weapon. Anything.

A tiny hand was placed on his chest and he was pushed against the wall, Nanami seriously invading his personal space. "Listen here," she said, her voice low, cutting and absolutely frightening. "I wasted my whole day traipsing around Tokiwa Mall so you can actually go out in public, and now you don't want to go see Kasumi because you're _scared_?" She shoved Hiroshi, and out of the corner of one fear-blinded eye, he could see Shigeru and Satoshi trying their hardest not to laugh at him. 

__

Jerks. 

"You buy into fear over a girl, and the world's gonna eat you alive!" Nanami ranted. "You need to get tough! Now get out there, go see Kasumi and hit on her like a real man!"

Before he could register, Nanami had yanked open the front door of Ookido-hakase's house and flung him through it.

"And don't come back here till you do!" she added, slamming the door shut.

Inside, Shigeru was leaning on Satoshi's shoulder, nearly crying with laughter. "Oh, hell, Nanami. That was some of your best work ever."

Outside, Hiroshi was staring at the closed door. He could hear laughter from behind said door, and wondered sourly where he could find some new, better friends.

He looked down at Nanami's masterpiece' and sighed. Oh, well. He might as well go see Kasumi. If he didn't, it'd mean he'd let Nanami haul him around Tokiwa Mall for four hours for nothing. 

Mumbling darkly, he made the trip across Masara — all three blocks of it — to Satoshi's house. Satoshi had said Hanako and Kasumi should be home, and Hiroshi was having trouble deciding whether he wanted them to be home or not.

He stood on the front step, lifted his hand to press the doorbell then stopped, letting his hand drop to his side. Ringing a doorbell didn't seem like a particularly badass thing to do. 

He reached for the doorknob, then stopped. Did being a badass mean he wasn't allowed to have manners?

He stood there for a few minutes, frowning, trying to solve the complex dilemma of badass and manners before reaching a compromise and knocking. 

The door was pulled open almost immediately and Hiroshi jumped back slightly, surprised.

"Oh, hi!" Kasumi said brightly. Then she frowned a little. "How come you didn't use the doorbell?" she asked.

Hiroshi opened his mouth and floundered for a response.

Kasumi didn't notice the fact that he was standing there wordless, and waved a dismissive hand. "Why are you even knocking, anyway? You practically live here!"

That was somewhat of a stretch, considering staying for a couple of weeks didn't really constitute as practically living' somewhere, but Hiroshi reminded himself that Kasumi was known for exaggerating.

Kasumi seemed to find his inability to speak or move amusing and laughed. She grabbed his wrist and pulled him through the doorway. 

"What are you doing here, anyway?" she asked, not seeming to care that he hadn't said a word since she'd opened the door. "Aren't you and Satoshi and his little manfriend supposed to tripping the light fantastic or whatever?"

Hiroshi couldn't resist cracking a smile at that. "Uh, yeah. I just ran over to grab something from my bag."

Kasumi smiled a devastatingly bright smile and headed up the stairs, Hiroshi at her heels. "Well, if you're headed to Satoshi's room, you can help me out."

"With what?" he questioned, following her into Satoshi's room, which was characteristically messy despite the efforts of Mr. Mime. 

She grinned and jumped over a pile of folded laundry. "Looking for my birthday present," she responded casually, not at all hesitant in admitting it. "Do you know where it is?"

"Uh, no," he lied, rifling through his bag in search of something he could take back to Shigeru's so Kasumi didn't think he'd just come over to see her.

Kasumi eased open one of Satoshi's drawers and looked through it. She found nothing and went for the drawer beneath it. Again she came up empty-handed, and she sighed. "He probably hid it over at Shigeru's. Stupid jerk."

Hiroshi zipped up his bag, a CD in hand. "Which one?"

Kasumi threw her hands in the air, causing the bottom of her yellow one-shoulder top to move away from the low-slung waistband of her sandblasted jeans. "Pick."

Hiroshi chuckled, and tried not to be distracted by the suddenly exposed sliver of smooth, white skin. 

All of the sudden, he became hyper aware of the fact that Kasumi was watching him. Not laughing, not talking, just standing there and watching him with her wide, unreadable aquamarine eyes. 

Noticing that he was slightly uncomfortable, Kasumi allowed a small smile to touch her lips. "Nice threads," she commented lightly. "New?"

So she'd noticed.

He looked down at his clothes, as if surprised by her comment. "What, these? Nah, I've had for them ages."

A perfectly shaped eyebrow lifted. "Really? I've never seen you dress like this before."

So she took notice of what he was wearing. Interesting.

Slowly, Hiroshi smiled slightly, keeping his eyes on her. It was the closest thing he'd had to an out-of-body experience — he wasn't in control. "Well . . . maybe I want to keep you guessing," he said lightly.

Her cheeks went mildly pink, and her lips curved in a small smile that showed, among other things, surprise. The surprised smile settled into something more unreadable and she slowly walked towards the door, her hips moving like she knew he was watching her.

She stopped when she reached the door and looked at him over her shoulder, still wearing that complex smile. "You coming?"

Wordlessly, he followed her downstairs.

"Well, I better get back to Shigeru's," he said, waving the CD as if that were evidence. 

Kasumi nodded, but didn't say anything.

Hiroshi's hand was on the doorknob when she called out to him.

"Hey, Hiroshi."

He turned slowly, wondering what she wanted. "Yeah?"

Kasumi rested a hand on her hip. "Are you doing anything tomorrow night?"

Hiroshi reminded himself to not jump to conclusions. Yes, she'd just uttered the immortal phrase of everyone fishing for a date, but this was Kasumi. For all he knew, she wanted him to help her glue all of Satoshi's furniture to the ceiling.

"No," he responded, sending a silent thank-you to his vocal cords for not failing on him. "Why?"

Kasumi stretched, cat-like. "Well, there's this movie I really want to see, but I can't ask Satoshi because then Shigeru would come and then I'd be in the middle of another love-fest." She made a face. "I thought maybe you'd want to come."

__

Yes. Yes, yes, yes, oh my god, yes. 

"Yeah, sure." Hiroshi shrugged. "Sounds like fun." He grinned. "I'll pick you up from your room, okay?"

Kasumi laughed. "Sure. I'll check the times tonight. We'll have to leave pretty early, though. Hanada's an hour and a half drive." She offered a cute half-smile, like she was playing a game. 

"Hanada?" he echoed. There were cinemas closer to Masara than Hanada 10.

She lifted her narrow shoulders and smiled a beguiling smile. "I know it's not close . . . but it's got _really_ big screens." She batted her lashes.

He laughed. "Okay, okay, we'll go to Hanada. Don't get all sappy on me, I'll have to cut all your eyelashes off or something."

Kasumi laughed merrily. "Well, you better go back to Shigeru's. I'll see you tonight, okay?"

He couldn't have wiped off the smile if he'd wanted to. "Definitely."

Hiroshi was almost out of the door, when she called out to him. 

"Oh, hey, could you do me a favour?" He turned to look at her expectantly. "Tell Shigeru's he's a bite-sized bitch for me."

She looked so serious, so deadpan, like it was an everyday request that Hiroshi laughed. "Will do."

He waited till he'd closed the door and was halfway down the road before he leaped in the air, clicking his heels together. 

Who cared how lame he looked? He was going to a movie with Kasumi.

__


	5. Subtle As A Sledgehammer

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 5 - Subtle As a Sledgehammer

"So . . . how did it go?"

Hiroshi jumped at the purring, smug voice that hit him as he walked out to the back porch at the Ookido household. Nanami was leaning against the wall, watching him with her dark eyes, waiting for a response.

Satoshi and Shigeru were seated at the wooden outdoor setting, waiting just as eagerly. 

"Pretty well," he said vaguely, tossing the CD he was still carrying onto the table. He watched as Nanami scowled at his deliberate vagueness and smirked. Let her wonder.

Hiroshi sat as Satoshi picked up the CD and studied the cover. He waved it at Hiroshi. "What's with this?"

"Oh." He waved a dismissive hand. "That was my cover story for going over there."

Shigeru didn't seem interested in cover stories as he propped his feet up on a spare chair. "So what happened?"

Hiroshi tried to force down the grin that was threatening to explode. "Oh, alright. We're going to a movie tomorrow night in Hanada." He looked at Shigeru. "By the way, Kasumi told me to tell you you're a bite-sized bitch."

Nanami laughed. Shigeru scowled. 

"Now I've got to think of something to call her," he muttered, drumming his fingers on Satoshi's wrist. 

"Bite . . . sized . . . bitch," Nanami murmured, pretending to write it down. "That's fantastic. That's quotable."

Satoshi was the only one who seemed to have registered what Hiroshi had said. "You're going to a movie with Kasu-chan? Like a date?"

Hiroshi shrugged. Somehow mentioning that it _wasn't_ a date would kill the moment. "Date is such a subjective term . . . "

Shigeru frowned suddenly. "Hey, is that bite-sized bitch line a crack at the size of my –"

"So is it a date or not?" Nanami interrupted with amazing timing, kicking her brother's foot off the vacant seat and sliding into it.

"Technically . . . " Hiroshi said, drawing out the word. "No. At least, I don't think so. But you know, this is Kasumi and you –"

"Never know with Kasumi," chorused Satoshi and Nanami with a sigh.

Shigeru snorted derisively. "Yeah, well I _do_ know with Kasumi and if you ask me, it's not a date because she still sees you as nothing more than a gal-pal because you're _still_ a pussy!"

Nanami heaved a sigh. "Oh, shut up you bite-sized bitch," she said dismissively. 

Shigeru's mouth opened to retort, then closed when he couldn't find one. He settled for an atomic snowl.

Satoshi offered Hiroshi an encouraging smile. "What I think my _dear_ Geru-chan is trying – unsuccessfully – to say is that you should use this date . . . non-date . . . whatever, to put your badass thing into full swing. Be crazy. Impress her."

Nanami leaned across the table to Hiroshi, her dark eyebrows drawn together. "You do realise that you're taking _dating_ advice from two guys who are dating _each other_, right? That's not the kind of example I'd be looking towards." At the deathly look her brother shot at her, Nanami rolled her eyes and settled back in her chair. "Don't get your panties in a twist. The highly taboo word of gay' did not feature once in that spiel."

Shigeru sputtered. "I am not _gay_," he insisted, as he had been insisting, Hiroshi couldn't help noticing, for almost a year now. "And I have told you so many times - I am attracted to people, not gender."

"Right." Nanami nodded. "And _I've_ told you so many times that I don't care how many feel-good phrases you hide behind – you are gay, gay, gay!"

Satoshi knew Nanami, knew that she was saying all this just to piss off Shigeru and knew that he should step in before anyone started bleeding. 

Hiroshi watched, a little scared, as Nanami started singing merrily to the tune of Jingle Bells, every syllable replaced by the dreaded g' word and Shigeru sang pretty much the same song, using the word bitch' instead.

Satoshi sighed as though he'd seen this before, pushed back his chair and gestured for Hiroshi to follow him inside.

"Ignore them," he advised, dropping onto the couch in the living room. "They get like this every, oh, half an hour or so. You get used to it."

Hiroshi nodded vaguely. He didn't think he could ever get used to that.

"So . . . " Satoshi grinned broadly at his friend. "You and Kasumi, huh? How cute would that be, two of my best friends dating?"

Hiroshi buried his face in his hands. He couldn't handle this. He'd almost forgotten why he'd kept it a secret for so long – now he knew.

Satoshi laughed. "Okay, okay. You don't really want to discuss it. I understand."

Slowly, Hiroshi lifted his face from his hands and eyed Satoshi. "Thank _God_ you do," he said, shaking his head. "This is something I really don't want to talk about."

Satoshi shrugged. "That's fine. Like I said, I understand." He grinned brightly. "Don't worry, you have my word. I won't say a thing."

His words were barely audible over the clatter of plates, but Hiroshi still heard Shigeru's taunting whisper. 

"She's got killer legs, doesn't she?" he murmured as he set the table, looking at Hiroshi sideways. "Bet it drives you crazy."

Hiroshi chopped a cucumber in half with one strike of a knife. "One more word and I will break your neck," he responded cheerfully, cutting the cucumber into paper-thin slices.

Kasumi, standing over the stove, a wooden spoon in one hand and a frown on her face, turned away from the bubbling pot of . . . something and looked at Hiroshi. "You're breaking Shigeru's neck? Can I help?"

"Can I help?" Shigeru parroted, copying her exact tone of voice with a roll of his eyes. "Oh my god, Kasumi, you are _so _funny, I want to be _just_ like you."

"Original," Kasumi responded sarcastically. "How do you come up with these insults?"

"Now children, play nice," Satoshi chided, stepping into the busy kitchen. He'd been darting in and out of the kitchen, trying to make his friends think he was helping. 

"Look, Sato-chan!" Kasumi crowed happily. "I made Takeshi's special soup!" She held up the pot for him to see and made a face. "Except for some reason it looks different when he makes it."

Shigeru snorted. "That's because when Takeshi cooks, we don't get struck with food poisoning," he said derisively.

Kasumi scowled and threw a capsicum at him. With surprising accuracy, it hit him smack in the face. 

"She shoots, she scores!" she cheered, doing a victory dance.

Satoshi frowned. "See, this is why I don't let you cook," he reprimanded.

"He had it coming," Hiroshi said blithely in defence of Kasumi. 

Kasumi smiled at Hiroshi's words and stopped her victory dance to wrap her lithe arms around his neck. "See, _someone_ loves me," she purred, glaring at Shigeru.

Hiroshi, trying valiantly to not enjoy having Kasumi wrapped around him like a winter scarf, saw the way Satoshi was grinning and Shigeru was smirking and made a mental note to hit them both later on.

"Uh, Kasumi? You're strangling me," he lied. 

Giggling, Kasumi bounced back to the stove, apparently not noticing the fact that Hiroshi was alarmingly close to hyperventilation. 

Still grinning widely, Satoshi opened his mouth like he was about to say something – but Hiroshi shot both him and Shigeru dark, warning glares that held promises of debilitating injuries if they dared to say a word.

Satoshi laughed and mimed zipping his mouth shut. Hiroshi groaned inwardly as he carved the capsicum that Kasumi hadn't thrown at Shigeru into thin slivers. With subtlety like that, it wouldn't matter if he actually _said_ anything or not.

Shigeru had finished setting the table and asked Hiroshi if anything else needed to be done – he asked so with a pointed glance at Satoshi, who was still trying to look as though he was helping without actually doing a thing.

Amused, Hiroshi gestured to a stick of bread lying on the counter and asked Shigeru if he could slice it, adding his own pointed glance at the oblivious Satoshi.

"I'm finished!" Kasumi announced cheerfully.

Shigeru frowned and picked up the bread stick. He tapped it against the counter, producing a solid thunk sound. "What is this, two weeks old?" he asked, still hitting the counter with it. "I can't even get a knife through it."

"That's funny." Slowly, Kasumi turned away from the stove and looked at Shigeru levelly, a tiny, smug smile on her lips, her thumbs hooked in her belt loops. "From what I hear, Shigeru's usually _very_ good at penetration."

Three sets of shocked eyes turned to look at her as she smiled serenely, turned the stove burner off and sauntered out of the kitchen, her hips swaying.

It was at least five minutes after she'd walked away before Shigeru chuckled, shaking his head. "I've said it before and I'll say it again, Hiroshi. You don't stand a chance with that girl. She'll run you straight into the ground."


	6. Road Rules

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 6 - Road Rules

Hiroshi didn't realise he was pacing until Satoshi grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him to the couch.

"Sit," he commanded. "You want a word of advice? If you want to be with Kasumi, you need to learn the basic rule of twenty."

"Rule of twenty?" Hiroshi echoed, rubbing his slightly sweaty hands on the sides of his jeans. 

Satoshi nodded. "Rule of twenty," he confirmed. "Whatever time Kasumi says she wants to leave, add twenty minutes to it and you've got the time she'll actually come out of the bathroom. And when she _does_ finally come out, you've got twenty seconds to tell her how gorgeous she looks before she gets sulky." 

"Rule of twenty," Hiroshi repeated, tattooing what Satoshi had just said on his brain. 

Satoshi nodded again, then glanced at the clock on the VCR. "And, judging by my calculations, she should be out any —"

"I'm ready!" Satoshi was interrupted by Kasumi running down the stairs. 

Hiroshi stood up when he heard her voice and couldn't help staring when she came into view. White slides, denim skirt, white sleeveless top. Her red-gold hair rested on the tiny ruffles on the shoulders of her top. 

"You look incredible," he said, not because of the rule of twenty, but because his brain couldn't process any other thought.

She laughed and jumped over the remaining steps. "I know," she said glibly. She turned her attention to Satoshi. "So what are you and Miss Man doing tonight?" 

He sighed. "I probably don't need to remind you that he has a name. But, since you ask, I'm just hanging out at his place."

Kasumi feigned a yawn. "Fascinating." She stepped closer to Hiroshi and touched his wrist. "You ready to go?"

He'd been ready for twenty-five minutes, but didn't say so. "Yeah, sure, let's go."

Kasumi grinned and looked up at him though WonderCurl mascara-laden lashes. "Are we taking your car?" she asked in a tone of voice that would have made him change his mind if he hadn't been planning to take his car.

Intrigued by the fact that she seemed to want to take his car, Hiroshi dangled his keys in front of her, grinning. Kasumi gave the closest thing she'd ever uttered to a squeal and clapped her hands. 

"Oh, I love your car!" she enthused happily, wrapping her fingers around his wrist and pulling him to the door. 

Hiroshi let Kasumi drag him outside, ignoring the wink Satoshi gave him that was about as subtle as a sledgehammer. 

As Hiroshi drove them out of Masara, Kasumi sighed quietly and shifted in her seat slightly. "I'm actually going to miss this place," she murmured, pushing a lock of hair out of her eyes. 

Hiroshi glanced over at her, mildly surprised. "You're going to miss this place?" he asked as he merged onto the freeway. "Where are you going?"

Kasumi turned wide aqua eyes to Hiroshi. "Did I say that out loud?" At his nod, she sighed. "Promise not tell anyone if I tell you?"

"Yeah, of course." Hiroshi's natural instinct to play personal therapist kicked in. "What's up?"

Kasumi sighed again and tugged at a lock of her hair. "Okay. I haven't told Satoshi yet, because I know he'll get mad at me . . . but I'm leaving Masara. Next month. I'm moving back to Hanada."

Hiroshi was surprised at this — Kasumi had been living with Satoshi for so long, he'd always assumed things would never change. "You're moving back to Hanada? How come?"

She shrugged her narrow shoulders and stretched slightly. "How come? Because I've been sponging off Hanako and Satoshi for a long time and I think it's about time I grew up and did my own thing." She shrugged again. "Besides that, Sakura's getting married in a couple of months and Ayame and Botan will need my help at the gym." Kasumi forced a smile. "It'll be good. I'll be back at the gym, and Sakura's fiance Benjiro has a job lined up for me . . . " She trailed off, as if doubting her own words.

Hiroshi frowned a little and Kasumi saw it out of the corner of her eye. She gave a half-hearted laugh and pushed him slightly. "Oh, what are you looking so down about?" she teased. "You don't even live anywhere near Masara."

That was true, of course. But if Kasumi moved back to Hanada, then he wouldn't be able to use visiting Satoshi as an excuse to see her. Not that he could actually tell her that.

Hiroshi shrugged a little. "I know. It's just that if I'm ever in town visiting Satoshi, I won't get to see you." His cheeks flamed red as he spoke.

Kasumi either didn't notice that he was blushing or ignored it. "So come up to Hanada if you're ever around," she said. "It's not that far, and we've got _heaps_ of room at the gym." She let out a gasp suddenly and clapped her hands. "Oh, I have the _best_ idea! You should come up to Hanada in like two months for Sakura's wedding. Everyone's gonna be there, it'll be so much fun."

"I'd like to," he said carefully. "But I don't even know your sister."

Kasumi obviously wasn't concerned by this. "Oh, please. There's like five hundred people coming. One more's not going to make a difference." She nudged him and winked. "Besides, you can be my date."

Every ounce of blood in Hiroshi's body rushed to his head.

"Date?" he echoed, unable to form a sentence any longer than that. 

"Mmm-hmm," Kasumi responded, either not noticing or ignoring Hiroshi's stunned state. "I'm a bridesmaid, and I'll never hear the end of it if I end up dateless. Besides," she went on, offering a lopsided smile. "You look _so_ good in a suit."

Hiroshi blinked, surprised. Kasumi laughed at his surprise, a delighted laugh like one directs at a kitten that's just done something cute. 

"New Years by The Pier?" she said, angling her head. "Last year?" She laughed. "That rhymes. You wore that _hot_ gunmetal suit with the red tie. You looked _amazing_."

Coming from Kasumi, self-professed fashion guru of the world, this was high praise. Coming from Kasumi, hottest girl Hiroshi had ever met, this was enough to make his head spin and his testosterone rage. 

"Thanks." He eyed her, the boost to his confidence in turn boosting his courage. "If memory serves, you looked pretty amazing yourself."

She fanned herself primly. "Well, I try," she said with mock self-adoration, tossing her hair off her shoulders. 

Hiroshi laughed. 

She was giggling. Helplessly, her narrow shoulders shaking as she leaned against his car for support. Hiroshi, too, was laughing, but the sight of Kasumi falling over herself with hysterical giggles was distracting. 

"Oh, God," she gasped, swiping her index finger along her lower lashline. "That was . . .the _worst _movie I have ever seen in my life."

Hiroshi opened the door for her and Kasumi, still giggling, allowed him to help her inside. 

By the time he had walked around the car and gotten into the driver's side, Kasumi's head was resting on the dashboard, shaking from her giggles. 

"The way the woman was all you killed my daughter, you bastard' and then she's like take me, you big hunk of man'." She broke into a fresh round of giggles, tears in the corners of her aqua eyes. "Man, who writes this stuff?"

Hiroshi grinned and reversed out of his space. "And how amateur was the acting?" he asked, steering his way out of the crowded carpark. "It's like, Look at me, mom! I'm acting!' I think they all graduated from the Days of Our Lives School of Drama."

Kasumi lifted her head off the dashboard and laughed merrily. "How about the guy who was supposed to be Australian? _What_ was with the accent?"

"G'day, mate," Hiroshi said, his imitation disturbingly accurate. "This is me sheila, Tracey. We're having a barbie tomorrow arvo!"

Again, her giggles turned hysterical.

"It looked so good in the previews!" she cried between giggles.

"Well, it's almost there," Hiroshi said with a shrug. "You know, it falls into so bad it's good' category. I'd recommend it to a friend."

The very, almost obnoxiously loud rumble of a V8 engine punctuated his words. The mandatory pounding-bass pulsed over the sound of the engine. 

Kasumi pressed herself against her window to see the red Club Sport roll up beside them. 

"That is the _sexiest_ car I have ever seen," she breathed. "Spoiler . . . mags . . . oh my god, get his number plate so I can track him down and marry him."

Well, Hiroshi thought sourly. That's one way to kill the mood.

The driver — a spiky haired punk who couldn't be more than nineteen — spotted Kasumi eyeing his car and offered her a wink. 

Hiroshi scowled. His turf was starting to feel invaded.

As Hiroshi scowled, the driver of the Club Sport gestured to him then revved his V8. Kasumi nudged Hiroshi, her blue-green eyes bright. 

"I think Mr. Club Sport over here wants to drag you," she informed him. She sounded amused — as if the thought of Hiroshi doing such a blatantly irresponsible thing was absurd.

Hiroshi peered around Kasumi to Mr. Club Sport. He thrust him a thumbs-up and revved his engine again. 

Kasumi laughed, still finding humour in the idea of Hiroshi drag-racing with someone. 

Before he could rethink his decision, Hiroshi returned Mr. Club Sport's thumbs up and revved the V6 engine of his Vectra. 

Mr. Club Sport grinned broadly. Kasumi turned to Hiroshi, her mouth open with surprise, her cheeks flushed with excitement. 

Hiroshi set his jaw and focused his eyes on the traffic lights, watching them switch from amber to red and then . . . finally . . . to green. 

Kasumi squealed as Hiroshi's Vectra shot forward with a burst of speed. The Club Sport matched Hiroshi's Vectra, then pulled forward, the deep rumble filling the night air. 

Kasumi was gripping the dashboard, her eyes sparkling with sheer excitement. 

Hiroshi pressed on the accelerator, giving his car as much as it could take. The speedometer climbed up to 180 . . . 185 . . . 

He pulled even with the Club Sport. 

"You can do it, Hiroshi," Kasumi enthused, clapping her hands. 

He leaned forward, hands gripping the steering wheel, leaning on the accelerator. The speedo moved up . . . 190. 

He pulled ahead of the Club Sport slightly. A Landcruiser blared it's horn at them as they shot past. 

The next set of traffic lights was visible. He just had to stay ahead of the Club Sport for a few more seconds . . . 

And then he was shooting across the next intersection, the Club Sport just — _barely _— behind him. He'd done it. 

"You did it!" Kasumi squealed, bouncing excitedly. 

The Club Sport turned right, and blared it's horn in appreciation. The driver's hand stuck out of one of the tinted windows, offering a congratulatory thumbs up. 

Hiroshi slowed his speed down to the normal 80 and sat back in his seat, letting the adrenaline subside. 

He'd just broken like a hundred road rules, thrashed the living daylights out of his car and totally kicked ass doing it. 

He was doing this — all of this — for a girl? Was he crazy?

As he was thinking, Kasumi reached out and smoothed hair off his slightly clammy forehead, her touch like butterflies on his skin. "That was so amazing," she told him. Her voice was low. Husky. Unbelievably sexy. 

Suddenly, it didn't seem so crazy. 

Her finger trailed from his forehead, over his cheek, down his jawbone. Then she grinned broadly, reverting to perky Kasumi without warning. "Satoshi and Shigeru will never believe this!"

Hiroshi almost laughed out loud. They'd better believe it. 

It was their damn fault he'd even gone ahead and done it.


	7. You Want Fries With That?

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 7 - You Want Fries With That?

Shigeru lifted his head and wiped a grease smudge from the back of his palm. "It's fine," he said, reaching up to push the bonnet of Hiroshi's car back down. "Actually, judging by what I saw, it's the first time you actually thrashed this baby. It probably did it good."

Hiroshi breathed a sigh of relief. After a few days, the adrenaline from dragging that guy in the Club Sport — and winning — had subsided. Reality had set in and with that had come concern for his car. 

"So," Shigeru said, grinning broadly, leaning against the car. "Drag-racing a guy in a Club Sport, hey? Weren't thinking with your head, were you?"

Hiroshi scowled. "I'm not answering that."

Shigeru chuckled. "At least, not the head on your neck." He watched as Hiroshi turned red, and then laughed some more. 

Hiroshi, embarrassed for being embarrassed, glowered at Shigeru then stomped away, muttering under his breath about what on earth Satoshi saw in him. 

He stormed inside and halted once inside. Kasumi was sitting in an armchair, long legs hanging over one of the arms, remote control dangling from her fingers. On Satoshi's big-screen TV, a man dressed like a martini was playing guitar. 

"Why are you watching a martini play electric guitar?" Hiroshi had to ask, his brow furrowing as the martini dropped to his knees for a riff. 

"Because there's nothing else on," Kasumi sighed, flicking the TV off and tossing the remote control across the room carelessly. "And it's either martinis playing guitar or being yelled at by Takeshi."

Her words were barely out of her room when Takeshi expressing his anger very vocally from the kitchen interrupted them. 

Kasumi stood up, tugging at her skirt. "Takeshi's hoping to make it into the Guinness Book of Records for the world's loudest profanity," she said dryly. She grabbed Hiroshi's wrist and pulled. "Come on, let's go see what happened."

Kasumi dragged him into the kitchen, where Takeshi was kicking at the tiles and cursing loudly and irritably. His head shot up when he heard them and he snapped his fingers. "Kasumi," he said, pointing at her. "Hiroshi. Both of you have cars. Good. I need you to do me a favour."

"What?" Kasumi asked, crossing the floor to where Takeshi stood and rubbing his shoulders soothingly. He sighed slightly and closed his eyes; when he did, Kasumi crossed her eyes at Hiroshi and twirled her index finger beside Takeshi's temple. 

He squelched a laugh just in time — Takeshi's eyes flew open. 

"I asked Satoshi to get me Greek yoghurt!" he ranted. "Is that so hard to remember? Greek yoghurt? I don't think so!" Hiroshi fought to keep a straight face as Kasumi stood behind Takeshi making faces at the back of his head. "So what does he get me? Just plain normal yoghurt! I can't work like this!"

He spun around and Hiroshi's breath caught in his throat. Now Kasumi was in for it. 

But by the time Takeshi was facing her, Kasumi's face was one of concern, her hands clasped in front of her. 

"I need you to go out and by me some Greek yoghurt," he said seriously, gripping her narrow shoulders. "It's vital to the success of this barbecue. Be quick, okay?"

Kasumi nodded sympathetically and cupped Takeshi's chin. "Don't you worry, we will," she advised. 

Then she was gripping Hiroshi's hand and pulling him out of the kitchen. "Come on," she said quietly. "You heard the man."

Outside, she let go of Hiroshi's hand, but he was still blushing from the sensation of her hand in his. It was something he could get used to. 

When Kasumi walked in the opposite direction of his car, he stopped. "My car's parked on the other side," he reminded her.

She stopped to grin at him over her shoulder. "I know. We're taking my car."

Hiroshi hurried to keep up with her. "Your car?" he asked, brow furrowed. He didn't even _know_ Kasumi had a car. "Why are you always borrowing Satoshi's car, then?"

She flashed him a wide smile. "Because his car is so much cooler than mine," she explained, digging a set of keys out of her pocket. "But I haven't driven mine in a while, and I think she's feeling neglected."

"She?" Hiroshi echoed as Kasumi unlocked a very old, very falling-apart VW Beetle. A pair of fuzzy dice hung from the rearview mirror; a sticker saying Honk if you love cheeses' was on the rear bumper. 

"Isn't she cute?" Kasumi beamed. "Her name's Blue."

Hiroshi eyed the car, then eyed Kasumi. "Hate to break it to you . . . but your car is yellow."

Kasumi rolled her eyes and slid into her car, leaning over to unlock the passenger side door. "I know," she said, as if the whole reason behind the name was patently obvious. 

Hiroshi accepted this fact and slid into the passenger seat, after dropping a pair of blue and orange rave trainers on the floor. The inside of her car was a mess, crammed with everything from clothes to CDs. Kasumi pushed her key in the ignition and twisted; with a splutter, the car started. 

She patted the dash consolingly, then pulled onto the road. Hiroshi let a breath escape when he realised that she wasn't actually that bad of a driver.

When they hit the main road, Kasumi pushed a tape into the stereo and turned the volume up obnoxiously loud. 

"I like it loud," Kasumi informed Hiroshi with a shrug when she saw him wince. 

He nodded. "I noticed," he responded dryly.

She laughed, tapping her fingers along to the fast beat. "_So good screaming and a shouting baby, when you take me on the floor_," she sang melodically before flashing Hiroshi a grin. "I love that line."

There wasn't a whole lot Hiroshi could say to that; he opted for a weak nod.

Still singing, Kasumi hit the main road where the supermarket was. But to Hiroshi's surprise, she suddenly changed lanes, glancing in the rearview mirror. 

"Where are you going?" he couldn't help asking. The supermarket was further down the road - and on the other side of the road. 

She flicked her blinker on. "I could really go for a burger," she said by way of explanation, swinging her VW up the drive of a fast-food joint. 

Hiroshi remained silent as Kasumi drove through the largely empty parking lot. "Takeshi's going to be pissed," he said finally. 

Kasumi laughed and shook her hair. "You're so cute when you're worried," she told him, squeezing his knee. 

For once, Kasumi's touch didn't make Hiroshi change his stance - Takeshi was kind of a big guy, and Hiroshi didn't feel up to pissing him off. He remained stubbornly silent.

"Oh, Hiroshi," Kasumi said with a sigh. "You worry too much, you know that? I mean, you're still relatively young - you should try to have some fun before you turn into a grandpa."

Her tone was so matter-of-fact that Hiroshi couldn't help but feel wounded. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked. "I have fun . . ."

Her smile was condescending. "Oh, sure, you would think that. But you're Mr. Responsibility - you never just do something for the moment." Kasumi paused. "Okay, dragging the other night was the only time I've seen you do something fun."

Maybe it was the way she said 'Mr. Responsibility' like someone would say 'Superman', but Hiroshi couldn't help think that she was right - as wounding as the whole thing was.

Looking triumphant, Kasumi headed for the drive-through.

"Stop the car," Hiroshi said suddenly.

Kasumi turned, looking both surprised and excited. "What?"

"Stop the car," he repeated firmly. "You're right. And we're going inside to eat."

Kasumi grinned, spun her car into an empty space. "Now you're talking."


	8. Homecoming Queen

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 8 - Homecoming Queen

"Where the _hell_ have you been?"

Hiroshi froze when he heard Takeshi's voice as him and Kasumi barrelled through the front door 45 minutes later. Takeshi rounded the corner and glared. 

"That should have taken you fifteen minutes, tops!" he ranted irritably. "Instead, you're gone for nearly an hour?"

Kasumi nudged Hiroshi slightly. She'd coached him through their cover story four times at the burger joint, but somehow it seemed a whole lot harder with Takeshi glowering full-force at them both. 

"The car broke down," Kasumi lied. 

Takeshi lifted an eyebrow and folded his arms over his chest. A blind guy could have seen he wasn't buying it. Hiroshi was about to break and spill the entire story, from the onions rings to the Dutch apple pie, when Kasumi nudged him again. 

"It was insane, Takeshi," Hiroshi found himself saying, like he'd done four times before. "We were halfway there when Kasumi's car just quit on us and -"

"Kasumi's car?" Takeshi echoed. "Why didn't you take yours?"

"Because it's easier to find a park with her car," Hiroshi lied flawlessly. "It's smaller. Anyway, the car just died in the middle of the highway, and Kasumi and I had to push it off the road into a parking lot."

Kasumi was nodding fervently, her cheeks flushed as if she'd just been through the trauma of her life. 

"So I checked under the hood and I found that it was the fan belt - which is one of the few things my dad taught me to fix in a car."

Takeshi's face was softening slightly, and Hiroshi realised with a surge of relief that he was buying it. 

"You can replace a fan belt with anything, as long as it has a little give," Hiroshi went on. "So we found a grungy old pair of nylons in Kasumi's back seat" - he suppressed a grin as she shifted uncomfortably beside him - "which worked fine. It's not perfect, but it should last until she gets her car to a mechanic."

Takeshi breathed a sigh. "Well, I'm impressed," he said finally. "I'd have never pegged you as a closet mechanic." He smiled. "And you're here and okay now, so I guess I can forgive you." He accepted the yoghurt from Kasumi and returned to the kitchen. 

Kasumi whacked Hiroshi's shoulder as soon as Takeshi was out of earshot. "Grungy nylons in _my_ backseat?" she said. "Gross! What happened to using your t-shirt?"

He shrugged and grinned. "I took some artistic licence."

Kasumi rolled her eyes, smiling as she did so, and went to walk away. He reached out and grabbed her wrist. 

"Hey . . . I had fun."

She winked at him. "And that was only the first hour."

Kasumi was coaxing Kenji to play Jump Off The Roof Into The Pool; Kenji, who remembered his broken ankle of last summer all too well, was doing his best to refuse without getting a spoonful of Takeshi's coleslaw in his face. 

"Okay," Shigeru said, voice low. He eyed Hiroshi solemnly over his beer. Hiroshi knew for a fact that Shigeru hated beer, but drank it because it was a 'man's' drink. "So I know you know close to nothing about cars. What really happened to make you and Kasumi take so long to get Takeshi's Bulgarian yoghurt or whatever it was?"

"Greek," Hiroshi corrected, over his Cointreau, Lime and Soda, which was not a man's drink but tasted a hell of a lot better than beer. 

"Whatever," Shigeru said dismissively. 

Satoshi lifted suggestive eyebrows at Hiroshi. "So, really, what happened? You get down and funky with your hoochy mama?"

Shigeru blinked. "Been watching too much MTV again, hmm?"

Satoshi grinned sheepishly. 

Hiroshi sighed, and watched as Kasumi calmly spiked Imite's drink. "Look, nothing happened," he said. "We just went to get a burger . . . you know how Kasumi is."

"Mmm-hmm," Shigeru said, watching as Imite lifted her raspberry soda to her lips, completely unaware of the liberal dash of vodka Kasumi had added. Imite didn't drink - at least, that's what she thought. Unbeknownst to her, she usually did whenever Kasumi was around. 

"Honestly!" Hiroshi said, exasperated. 

"Honestly what?" Kasumi asked innocently, having snuck up behind Hiroshi. She casually took his hand, like this was an everyday occurrence. 

Shigeru and Satoshi exchanged speculative glances. 

"Honestly, it's great to see everyone again," Hiroshi lied. Kasumi's birthday party wasn't for another week, but a bunch of her friends had shown up a week early - thus the cause for this barbecue. 

"Weren't you helping Takeshi at the barbecue?" Satoshi asked, taking the attention away from Hiroshi. 

Kasumi pouted. "I've been black-listed."

Shigeru eyed her suspiciously. "Why?"

She waved a dismissive hand, sipping her vodka and orange juice with the other. "I nearly set the hedge on fire."

Shigeru's eyebrows nearly shot up to his scalp, and he glared at the shorter girl, who shrugged carelessly. "It was an accident," she said, adding an "Honest!" which gave the exact opposite impression. 

"Right," Shigeru drawled, eyeing her suspiciously. 

Kasumi ignored him and smiled brightly. "Anyone want to come swimming with me? We can play this game called Jump Off The -"

Satoshi and Shigeru started backing away warily, knowing where this was heading. Neither wanted to spend the next six weeks in a cast. Kasumi watched them shrewdly as they backed away, making lame excuses and contradicting one another with said lame excuses. 

"Well, that was fun," Kasumi shrugged, polishing the last of her vodka and orange off and shaking her head sharply. Hiroshi watched her curiously. 

"What are you doing?" he asked. 

She moved her head sharply again. "It's my sobriety test," she explained. "Trying to see if I'm buzzed yet. If I am, when I shake my head really fast, my eyes will take a while to catch up." She shook her head. "Nope," she said ruefully. "I think it'll take another drink, at least."

Hiroshi chuckled. "My cousin Chisato bites her lip to see if she's toasted," he told her. "If she can't feel it, she is. Only one time she had a Guinness too many and she ended up bleeding all over this guy."

Kasumi laughed. 

In the distance, Imite fell into the pool. 

Kasumi sighed. "Well, since no one wants to play with me and I'm still not quite buzzed, I guess now's as good a time as any." She handed Hiroshi her empty glass, crossed the grass to the picnic table and jumped up, standing between the coleslaw and the chicken wings. "Can I have everyone's attention, please?"

Takeshi grinned. "You giving us a table dance, Kasumi?" He received a chicken wing to the head for that comment. 

"I have an announcement to make," she began, pausing to make sure she had everyone's attention. Sure enough, every set of eyes in the yard was on her. "First of all, thanks for coming, but you'll get my full rehearsed thank you speech at my birthday next week. I just think now's a good time to announce the fact that next month, I'm moving back to Hanada."

A shockwave of whispers rippled through the yard, Hiroshi the only one immune. For a moment, he felt an odd mixture of guilt and pride for being the only he knew about this in advance. When he looked at Satoshi, and saw the look of complete, distressed shock on his face, any pride Hiroshi may have felt was dashed. 

"My sister Sakura's getting married in a few months, and so my other sisters will need my help at the gym." She grinned brilliantly. "But rest assured, that I will be having a party to honour my homecoming."

A few people clapped, Takeshi whistled and Imite squeezed out the water from her hair. Kasumi curtsied and jumped daintily off the table, at the exact same moment that Satoshi threw Shigeru off him and stormed inside. 

Hiroshi moved over to where Kasumi stood, watching Satoshi depart with solemn aqua eyes. 

"Well," she said, mildly sarcastic. "That went better than expected."


	9. Hiss And Make Up

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 9 - Hiss and Make Up

"You are being so unreasonable!"

Kasumi's indignant, shrill cry managed to sound over the very bad, very loud, very eighties CD someone had snuck into the CD player. For a moment, people stopped awkwardly, but soon covered up the awkwardness with chatter. Hiroshi, on the other hand, crept up to the decking, unabashedly listening in on Kasumi and Satoshi. 

"_I'm_ being unreasonable?" Satoshi retorted hotly, his complexion red with anger, his normally warm eyes frosty. "You're the one who's upping and leaving! And don't look at me like that, Kasumi, because you and I both know that you've had this planned a lot longer than you're acting!"

"What do you care?" Kasumi's voice was shrill and pained, and Hiroshi knew that she was at the precipice of saying things she'd regret. "You pretty much ditched me the second you got your claws into Shigeru. You think I _like_ being a third wheel?"

Satoshi chuckled, a dry, low, hollow laugh, a sound that seemed too harsh to come from Satoshi. "Oh, so that's why you've been all over Hiroshi since he got here, huh? Trying to break even with me?"

"Oh, God!" Kasumi cried, turning away from Satoshi out of sheer frustration. "Why are you being so childish about this? Hiroshi's not just your friend - he's mine too! And I can do what I damn well please with him!"

"Like you said, Kasumi, he _is _my friend. I just want to make sure he doesn't fall victim to your games like, oh, I don't know, every single guy you've met in the last couple of years?" His tone was acid, his meaning unmistakable. 

Shaking with anger, Kasumi reached up to slap him. Satoshi was too fast for her and caught her wrist. For a few, tense seconds, they stood there silently, Satoshi gripping her wrist, and Kasumi quivering with rage. 

Then Satoshi flung her wrist from his grasp, turned and stormed deeper inside the house - no doubt to his room. Hiroshi watched as Kasumi watched him leave, then turned and ran out the front door. He winced as he heard the door slam. 

A low whistle sounded behind Hiroshi and turned sharply, his heart pounding. Shigeru was standing there, his jaw set grimly. 

"I can see to Satoshi," he said gruffly. "You gonna go after Kasumi or what?"

Hiroshi nodded, not bothering to answer with words, then tore through the house and through the front door after Kasumi. 

Out front, he saw that her car was still there, so she couldn't have gotten far. Hiroshi squeezed his eyes shut, trying to think of anywhere in walking distance that Kasumi might have escaped to. Of course, in her current state, she might have decided to try and walk to Hanada. 

"Think, Hiroshi," he said grimly. "Where would she go?"

Okay. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it logically. Kasumi was wearing slides, so she couldn't walk too far. He'd give her a one-mile radius. She was pissed off, so she'd probably head for somewhere calm, to try and calm her down. And she wouldn't want to go where there were people . . . somewhere quiet and isolated . . . 

It hit Hiroshi like a tonne of bricks, and he set off jogging in the general direction. 

Sure enough, he found her sitting by the river, in the secluded, shaded section that she and Satoshi had tried fishing in with little success. 

Hiroshi sat beside her, not too close, knowing she probably needed space. "Hey," he said quietly. 

Kasumi looked up, and Hiroshi was relieved to see she wasn't crying. "Hey," she responded, just as quietly. "Guess you saw all that, then?"

Was this where he was supposed to admit he'd been eavesdropping?

"I saw enough," he said carefully. 

Kasumi shook her head and wound a blade of grass around her finger. "I knew he would react like this," she reflected fretfully. "I don't know why I'm so . . . upset."

Hiroshi was almost - _almost - _amused by Kasumi's inability to understand her own feelings. She had never been good at the touchy-feely side of life. "Because he's your best friend and has been since the beginning of time," he pointed out. "And even if he is a jackass sometimes, you don't want him being mad at you."

Kasumi pondered this, then punched Hiroshi on the shoulder. "When did you get so smart?" she asked with a smile. 

He pretended to think it over. "I think was born this way."

Kasumi smiled a little, picking at a loose thread in her skirt. "I hate fighting with Satoshi," she said with a sigh. "I mean, we argue all the time, but we don't fight a lot. But when we do, we _really_ fight. It's like we don't know how to fight like grown-ups . . . "

Hiroshi heard everything Kasumi wasn't saying and lightly touched her knee. "You know he didn't mean what he said," he said gently. "He's just upset. And maybe you should cut him a little slack - what's the longest you two have been apart since you met?"

Kasumi's eyes widened slightly. "Yeah, I guess you're right," she admitted. "I guess I didn't really think of it from his perspective."

"Of course I'm right," Hiroshi said lightly.

She pushed him. "Been taking modesty lessons from Shigeru?"

Hiroshi grinned, but the mention of Shigeru reminded him of something. "Did you really mean what you said back there? About feeling like a third wheel?"

Kasumi's brow furrowed. "Yeah, kind of," she said quietly. "Satoshi was pretty much the first best friend I ever had. But it's like . . . a blessing and a curse at the same time. I mean, he's a great friend, but it's hard to be in his shadow. The only person who ever put me before Satoshi _was_ Satoshi. But when he started seeing Shigeru, all of the sudden I was on the backburner. It's not like I _resent_ Shigeru . . . I just miss the way things used to be."

Hiroshi was surprised at how much he empathised with Kasumi. "I understand. Satoshi's my best friend as well, and even though I don't see him often, I see him enough to know what it's like to live in his shadow."

Kasumi cracked an ironic grin. "He's special. I just wish I was the only one who knew how special he is."

Hiroshi laughed quietly. 

Then Kasumi's hand was resting on his hand, a rare look of sincerity in her eyes. "Thank you," she said softly. "Not many people put me before Satoshi." She didn't explain, but Hiroshi knew she was referring to him coming out and finding her. 

Hiroshi smiled. "I do."

"Yeah." Kasumi's eyes were solemn, but not dark. "I think I'm beginning to see that."

"Hiroshi, I don't want to do this."

He rolled his eyes and forcefully pushed her through the doorway to the kitchen. He could see Shigeru gripping onto Satoshi's wrists, preventing him from doing a runner. 

"Yes, you do," Hiroshi grunted, wondering how she was managing to get her all-show-no-substance slides to grip onto the floor. "Don't be so stubborn."

With a burst of energy, he shoved her through the doorway - Kasumi stumbled into the kitchen and stopped inches away from Satoshi. 

"Hi," she said awkwardly. 

Satoshi nodded. "Hi."

Kasumi pushed her hands in her pockets. "So . . . "

"So . . ."

Shigeru cleared his throat. "Hey, Hiroshi, you want to go to that other room without all the tension?" he asked, backing away into the living room. 

"Oh, yeah, I love that room," Hiroshi responded, following Shigeru. 

Satoshi watched them leave, mostly to procrastinate. "I'm really sorry, Kasumi," he said with a sigh. "I really didn't mean what I said . . . I'm just going to miss you is all, and I don't deal with missing people too well."

Kasumi managed a smile. "Yeah, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry for just springing it on you like that. That wasn't fair to you."

"I'm sorry for uh, you know, suggesting that you play guys."

"I'm sorry for trying to hit you."

Satoshi grinned. "I'm sorry I tried to stop you. I think I deserved it."

Kasumi laughed, feeling the tension ebb. She eyed Satoshi. "So, is that it then?"

He looked thoughtful, playing with the buckle on his watch. "Yeah, I guess so. It feels like we should say more. Or do something more."

"We could hug," Kasumi suggested with a shrug. 

Satoshi seemed okay with this idea and wrapped his arms around Kasumi like he'd done hundreds of times in the past. She buried her face in his chest, appreciating for once just how lucky she was to have his friendship. 

"I'm sorry I set your Paul Frank shirt on fire."

"I'm sorry I made you drink paint."

"I'm sorry they made those blue M&M's."

"I'm sorry Yahoo Serious ever had a film career."

Satoshi pulled away from Kasumi. "Okay . . . I think that about does it."

Kasumi nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

Satoshi grinned down at his best friend and pressed his lips to her forehead. "I love you, you know that right? Like, if I wasn't into guys, you'd be my first choice."

"Wow," she said dryly. "That's almost touching." She pulled away from Satoshi and turned to face the doorway. "Okay, you guys can come back in now."

Shigeru and Hiroshi crept back inside, looking wary. 

"So, are you okay now?" Shigeru asked, and there was something approaching guilt in his eyes. Kasumi realised with a start that what she'd said about being a third wheel had actually affected him. She didn't even realise Shigeru knew how to feel guilty. 

Kasumi impulsively kissed Shigeru on the cheek. "Yeah. We're good."

Shigeru visibly relaxed. 

Just then the sliding door opened and Takeshi poked his head through the door. "Hey, are you guys done yet? Because we're about to crack open the vodka watermelon."

Kasumi's eyes lit up. "Does Imite know it's a vodka watermelon?"

Takeshi shook his head, and she let out an excited squeal. She grabbed Satoshi's hand and dragged him outside, the two babbling merrily about how much watermelon it would take for Imite to get completely toasted. 

Shigeru watched them with a smile. "Hey," he said, nudging Hiroshi slightly. "You did a good thing. An incredibly difficult thing . . ."

Hiroshi shrugged. "You managed to calm down Satoshi - that's got to be just as difficult."

Shigeru smiled cryptically. "Maybe," he conceded. "But that's different. He listens to me . . . because he loves me."

And leaving Hiroshi to think, Shigeru disappeared outside for his own share of vodka watermelon. 


	10. Clean Holesome Fun

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 10 - Clean Holesome Fun

"And oh my God, do you remember the time when . . . " Kasumi trailed off, laughing hysterically, unable to say what she wanted to. She waved a helpless hand, uttered the word 'arm' and dissolved into laughter again. Shigeru and Hiroshi exchanged blank looks; Satoshi also began laughing. Despite the relative vagueness of Kasumi's words, it was apparently enough for Satoshi to understand. 

"Door handle," Satoshi managed, causing him and Kasumi to break into even more hysterical laughter, tear-inducing laughter. The kind of laughter that was so intense it was little more than silent tremors. 

Shigeru sighed and dumped some more sugar absentmindedly into his coffee. This would have been fine if there weren't twenty-seven little paper packets strewn across the table, one for each sugar Shigeru had already added to his coffee. Apparently Shigeru was unaware of this, because he blinked in surprise when, as he was lifting the mug to his lips, Hiroshi reached across the table and plucked it from his hand. 

"Ah, I wouldn't do that," Hiroshi advised, placing the mug on the empty table next to them. "Not unless you have diabetic aspirations."

Shigeru looked down at the empty sugar packets and sighed, sitting back in his chair. 

He was bored. Hiroshi was bored. Kasumi and Satoshi were not bored, and were too busy laughing at obscure memories ("Canned apricots!" Kasumi squealed with laughter) to notice that Hiroshi and Shigeru were bored. 

"You realise that this is all our fault." Hiroshi sipped his own coffee, waiting for Shigeru's response. 

Shigeru grunted. 

He was, of course, all too aware that this _was_ his and Hiroshi's fault. They'd forced Kasumi and Satoshi to make up, and now the pair were hell bent on making their last few weeks together count, even if it meant boring the pants off of anyone who could hear. 

It was when Kasumi put her head on Hiroshi's shoulders, tears of laughter leaving darkened splotches on his Colorado shirt that he took action. 

"Right, that's it," he said, standing up and seizing Kasumi's arm, weak from laughter. "You two are a health hazard to one another. Kasumi, you're coming with me. Satoshi, you'll go with Shigeru."

Satoshi snorted with laughter at nothing in particular, but it was enough to set Kasumi off again. Hiroshi held her up and sighed. 

"Jesus . . ." he murmured. "Come on, Kasumi, let's go."

Hiroshi helped the giggling girl out of the café and into the gleaming, white brilliance of Tokiwa Mall. 

"Breathe," he instructed calmly. 

Kasumi obeyed, taking deep breaths and only occasionally sputtering with laughter. Hiroshi watched over Kasumi's shoulder as an exasperated Shigeru dragged Satoshi out of the café. 

"Okay," Kasumi breathed, eyes closed. "I'm okay. I'm calm. It's all good."

Hiroshi eyed her doubtfully, at the way her lips continued to twitch, but shrugged and took her by the wrist, signalling in no uncertain terms that he was in control here. It wasn't often Hiroshi was in control with Kasumi, and he found himself liking it. 

"So, where are we going?" Kasumi asked lightly. 

Somehow, his grasp had moved from her wrist to become entwined with her hand. 

Hiroshi shrugged. "Anywhere. Everywhere. Who knows?"

Kasumi seemed happy with this idea and the two walked, hand in hand through the mall, largely uncrowded because it was a weekday, Kasumi occasionally making comments on people's fashion choices. Hiroshi was briefly reminded of Nanami. The nicer side of Nanami, though - not the brutalising, heinous side he was well acquainted with. 

It was on an impulse that Hiroshi pulled Kasumi towards a small shop wedged between a clothing store and a record store. It was a real impulse - not the kind of forced, done-only-to-impress pseudo-impulses he'd been succumbing to lately, which made him think that maybe, just maybe, his attempts to step out of his good guy mould were working. 

"What are you doing?" Kasumi asked, her voice a mixture of curiosity and the excitement she always exhibited when something crazy was about to happen. 

He flashed her a reckless grin. "Wait and see."

Hiroshi let go of Kasumi's hand, pressed his hands on the edge of the counter and smiled at the girl behind the counter, at her pink hair and various piercings. 

"How's it going?" the girl asked, eyes taking him in quickly, sizing him up. "What can I do for you?"

"I was looking to get my eyebrow pierced," Hiroshi said casually, as though it were an every day phrase, as common as 'Please pass the salt' and 'Anyone know how I got this bruise?'

Kasumi stared, wide-eyed. Had Hiroshi looked at her, he'd have seen she was well and truly impressed. 

The girl behind the counter flashed a brilliant smile, and walked around it to meet him. "Sure thing," she said. "What's your name?"

"Hiroshi."

"I'm Hikari." She shook his hand. "Ever been pierced before, Hiroshi?"

He shook his head, no, and she laughed musically. A piercing virgin, she said. She didn't get many of those in the store. 

Hiroshi picked his choice of ring - or Hikari's choice, as she recommended a simple silver barbell and he picked it, trusting her judgement - and before he knew it he was in a chair, Kasumi sitting on one side, Hikari standing on the other. 

"You ready for this?" Hikari asked, an almost gleeful smile on her face. She toyed with the barbell in her own eyebrow. 

Hiroshi nodded, surprising himself. 

"Here." 

Hiroshi looked at Kasumi, who was extending one of her tiny hands to him, an unreadable smile on her lips. 

His brow furrowed uncertainly. "What?"

"In case it hurts," she explained. "I don't have a piece of leather for you to bite down on, so I guess I'm the next best thing."

Was it his imagination, or was there something approaching mischief in her eyes?

"I'm not going to bite you, Kasumi," Hiroshi stated seriously.

The mischief in her eyes was unmistakable this time. "Why not?"

He floundered for a response, feeling his upper hand slipping. Hikari laughed. "Your girlfriend might have a point, Hiroshi," she said with a wink. "Didn't hurt much when I got mine done, but then I'm practically immune."

Kasumi didn't correct Hikari on the 'girlfriend' thing, and instead gently pried Hiroshi's jaw open and placed her hand - just between her thumb and wrist - between his teeth. 

For a brief moment, he realised how absurd this whole situation was. But there was no time to dwell, because Hikari was putting a hole through his eyebrow and he found himself biting lightly on Kasumi's hand against his will. 

Quick as lightning, his eyebrow was pierced, he had a silver barbell through it and Kasumi was pulling her teeth-marked hand from his mouth. 

He paid Hikari, thanked her, accepted her pamphlet on how to care for his piercing ("I had my tragus get infected once," Hikari had informed him with a wince, throwing in a complimentary bottle of special disinfectant) and left Snake's Body Piercing and Tattoos. 

"That is one sexy piercing," Kasumi said, standing on her toes to gently touch the silver barbell. She grinned speculatively. "Think I should go and get my nipple done?"

"That depends," Hiroshi said, slowly, thoughtfully. "Can I watch?"

A hand flew to Kasumi's heart, and she gaped at Hiroshi with mock horror. "My God, Hiroshi!" she exclaimed. "Did you just make a sexual innuendo?"

He winked, surprising them both with his boldness. "Could be," he said vaguely, before walking off, immensely pleased with himself. 

Kasumi watched him depart, shocked, before running after him. 


	11. Conversational Geometry

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

****

Chapter 11 - Conversational Geometry

"No, Satoshi, you may _not_ get one. Why on Earth anyone would want to mutilate themselves with silver appendages is beyond me . . . " Here, Hanako seemed to remember where she was, and who was with her. "It looks very nice, Hiroshi dear," she said calmly, before turning back to the important task of smearing copious amounts of chocolate frosting on the cake she'd baked earlier. 

"So, if it looks nice on Hiroshi, why can't I get one?" Satoshi persisted, successfully sounding approximately half his age. 

Hanako eyed him shrewdly, as mothers tend to do. "Don't push your luck," she advised calmly. "I'm quite sure that your friends could finish this whole cake off without any help from you."

Satoshi grinned and obediently fell silent. 

"I have to ask, though," Hanako began, handing Satoshi the frosting bowl to lick - there were some things he just hadn't grown out of, and probably never would grow out of, knowing Satoshi. "What on Earth possessed you to get your eyebrow pierced? If you were Takeshi, I would understand, the boy has so many extra holes in his body I'm surprised he doesn't leak" - Shigeru snorted with both amusement and agreement - "but I'm quite surprised that _you_ went and got it done."

Hiroshi shrugged. "It's hard to say, really," he said honestly. "We were just walking past the place, and it was just an impulse, really."

"Right." Shigeru sounded doubtful. "A carefully planned and orchestrated impulse."

Hiroshi didn't blame Shigeru for his doubt. "No, seriously," he insisted. "It was a real spur-of-the-moment thing. No ulterior motive whatsoever."

Satoshi shot Shigeru a meaningful glance, which wasn't as effective as he might have hoped, due to the gooey chocolate frosting beard he was sporting. 

"Ah," Shigeru said sagely. "I see."

Hanako clearly didn't see whatever it was that Shigeru could see, but knew better than to ask. She shook her head slightly, and left the kitchen, telling them she would 'leave them to it'. 

Satoshi set the sticky frosting bowl aside and leaned forward, dark eyes widely intent. "Okay, she's gone. Here's the question. You realise that tomorrow's the big night, right? Kasumi's birthday. One of the last few chances to impress her before she leaves. Got any plans?"

"Oh, that reminds me," Shigeru interrupted without any form of apology. "Satoshi and I bought another present for Kasumi at the mall . . . it seemed kind of cheap for three people to give her one bikini. We figure that can just be from you, considering you paid for it and all."

"Who cares?" Satoshi demanded impatiently, rubbing a splotch of frosting from his thumb. "Kasumi's out with Imite, which means we have the perfect opportunity plan the final assault!"

His words were serious, but it was impossible to take him seriously whilst he was wearing Hanako's frosting like a well-groomed beard. Exasperated, Shigeru reached across the table and scrubbed at Satoshi's face with a napkin. 

"Ow!" Satoshi protested, trying to push him away. 

Hiroshi, however, was too caught up in his own thoughts to be at all entertained by this display. "Final assault?" he echoed, his dark eyes narrowed with mild consternation. "Isn't that a little . . . drastic?"

Shigeru tossed the crumpled napkin aside, having scrubbed Satoshi's face clean. "Drastic? Hardly. Satoshi's right, Hiroshi. This is it. Your last chance. The sky's the limit. All bets are off. The deuces are wild. The -"

"Cliches are getting annoying," Hiroshi interjected, rolling his eyes. 

Surprisingly, Shigeru did not snap back twice as viciously as Hiroshi expected, but instead shot Satoshi a deeply meaningful glance. 

"Did you see that, Satoshi?"

"I saw that, Shigeru."

The two nodded solemnly, and Hiroshi shook his head with exasperation. "What are you two airheads on about?"

Shigeru inhaled sharply, shook his head. "Did you hear that, Satoshi?"

Satoshi nodded gravely. "I heard that, Shigeru."

"I think I should notify his next of kin," Shigeru said solemnly. 

"Notify his next of kin, Shigeru," Satoshi said, as though he had thought of it. 

Hiroshi was struggling between annoyance and amusement. "Come on -"

"Tragic, really."

"Heart breaking."

"What are you talking about?" Hiroshi demanded, aware that all this was flying straight over his head and out the kitchen window. 

Satoshi placed his left hand over Hiroshi's right and eyed him solemnly, undisguised concern in his dark eyes. "It's going to be okay, Hiroshi," he assured him. "Hang in there, tiger."

Hiroshi was fairly certain that if someone didn't enlighten him in the next thirty seconds, he was going to explode. 

"Don't you get it, Hiroshi?" Shigeru was smiling a complex, unreadable smile. "You've turned. In the few weeks you've been here in Masara, you've done a complete personality 360."

"180," Satoshi corrected. 

"What?"

"A 180," Satoshi repeated. "Because if he did a 360, he'd just be where he started . . . you know, because a 360 is a circle and all."

Hiroshi wasn't particularly interested in Satoshi's laws of conversational geometry - he was too busy considering Shigeru's words. 

"But that sounds stupid," Shigeru argued. "Like 'oh he's changed so much, he's done a full 180'. That sounds -"

"Have I really changed that much?" Hiroshi interrupted. 

Shigeru stared at him, part amused, part amazed. "Hiroshi - you just interrupted me and didn't even apologise. And you need to ask me if you've changed?"

Hiroshi opened his mouth to protest, then closed it when he realised Shigeru was right. 

"Don't think we're the only ones who've noticed it as well," Satoshi advised. Hiroshi was about to ask what that was supposed to mean, when the front door opened and Kasumi entered, home from hanging out with Imite. 

She poked her head into the kitchen and smiled. "Hey guys," she said brightly, glancing in the general direction of Shigeru and Satoshi. Her blue-green eyes shifted, and landed on Hiroshi. "Hey, Hiroshi."

"Hey, Kasumi," Satoshi and Shigeru chorused. 

Her eyes were still on Hiroshi, a tiny smile on her lips. 

"Hey, Kasumi," Hiroshi said, casually.

Her smile widened and then she disappeared. 

Satoshi stood up and placed the empty frosting bowl in the sink. "Tomorrow night," he said. 

"Final assault," Shigeru said, also standing up. 

And then they too disappeared, leaving Hiroshi alone at the kitchen table, staring at Kasumi's birthday cake. 


	12. The Final Assault

**__**

Nice Guys Finish Last

A Pokemon Fanfiction by Kayley Laskitt

Disclaimer: Oh, come on, these things are about as useful as a hip pocket on a singlet. But, here it is just for the record - I own a sleek Cooper St dress, a '77 Mazda, but I do **not **_own Pokemon or anything associated with it. Thank you. That is all._

Rating: PG-13, I guess. Might be some language in there for all I know, but nothing you wouldn't have heard if you've ever been to school.

Author's Notes: As if anyone is reading this. Pairing is indigoshippy - that is, Kasumi x Hiroshi. There's a bit of Shigeru x Satoshi as well. 

Dedication: To Jesse, who got a major 97.35 for her TER score and got into Bio-Med at Melbourne Uni. I'm so proud of you - my little Jess is all grown up!

--------------

There was only word to describe the atmosphere in Satoshi's backyard. 

Crazy. 

The people were crazy. The drinks were flowing like crazy. A good portion of Kasumi's presents were crazy - and a few were probably outlawed in most states. Even crazier was the music selection - from dance to rap to punk to vintage eighties. It was almost as if a chimp had been dubbed DJ for the evening, and given the company that Kasumi held, Hiroshi wouldn't be at all surprised if that was the case. 

And that, Kasumi asserted, was the way she liked it. 

She looked beautiful, but then no one really expected anything less from her. Bootleg hipster jeans teamed with a strapless red top that had a big 84 printed on it. Casual, because that was the way Kasumi was. Her hair hung in loose, wispy curls down her back. Now, as she laughed with Takeshi, the dying sunlight made the tiny ruby-red rhinestones stuck along her delicate collarbone glimmer and shine. Hiroshi didn't see this, though; he was too busy hiding around the side of the house. 

More accurately, he wasn't hiding. He was waiting. And praying. Waiting for his cue. Praying Nanami wouldn't screw up said cue.

Just as he was beginning to regret even asking Nanami for her help, the music - a bass-heavy, headache-inducing, club mix - stopped momentarily. That was his cue. 

Hiroshi rounded the corner he was hidden around, seeing Nanami poised, ready for action, and Kasumi chatting to Natsume, completely oblivious to the carefully planned plot that was unfolding all around her. 

Hiroshi nodded once, sharply at Nanami, who flashed a brilliant smile and stabbed a button on the CD player with a dramatic flourish. 

"Final assault," Hiroshi murmured, repeating the words Shigeru and Satoshi had said, words he had thought were, until now, overly dramatic. 

The change of music didn't cause anyone to bat an eye, because the music selection had been unpredictable at best all night. Kasumi, still chatting away to Natsume, was still oblivious, and had no idea what was about to happen. But then, Hiroshi reasoned, who in their right mind would anticipate something like this?

"I thought love was only true in fairy tales . . . meant for someone else but not for me . . ." 

Hiroshi found himself grinning as the people crowded in the yard slowly started to turn towards him and his microphone. Kasumi was one of the last to turn, her delicate brow furrowed in confusion. When she saw him, her confusion turned to confused amusement. 

"Love was out to get me," Hiroshi sang, slowly walking towards Kasumi, grinning the whole while to mask his extreme nervousness. "That's the way it seemed . . . disappointment haunted all my dreams . . . "

Kasumi laughed with delighted surprise as Hiroshi leapt up onto the redwood picnic table, landed lightly between the quiche and potato salad, and didn't skip a beat in doing so. He winked at her boldly. 

"Then I saw your face!" he sang. "Now I'm a believer! Not a trace of doubt in my mind . . ." Hiroshi dropped to his knees, still on the table, putting him at eye level with Kasumi. "I'm in love . . . I'm a believer, I couldn't leave you if I tried."

Kasumi's left hand was clamped over her mouth, and she looked as though she couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry. "You're insane," she told him, shaking her head, but she was smiling as she said it.

Hiroshi grinned and jumped lightly off the table. "I thought love was more or less a given thing," Hiroshi crooned, grabbing Kasumi's free hand and pulling her with him, which was difficult given the way she was giggling uncontrollably. "Seems the more I gave the less I got. What's the use in trying? All you get is pain . . . when I wanted sunshine, I got rain!"

Hiroshi had never seen Kasumi blush so furiously before, and he liked the way he could have that affect on her. 

"Then I saw your face! Now I'm a believer! Not a trace of doubt in my mind! I'm in love . . . ooh, I'm a believer, I couldn't leave you if I tried!"

It seemed Kasumi had reached a decision on whether to cry or laugh, and was doing both, her tiny hands covering her face. Then she pulled her hands away from her face and wrapped her arms around Hiroshi's neck, her wet cheek pressing against his. 

"I can't believe you just did that." She was still laughing, still crying. Hiroshi could feel her shaking from the efforts of both, her body against his. "Oh my god, are you just the cutest or what?" she asked, shoving him slightly. 

Hiroshi couldn't resist a quiet laugh at her words and he pulled back so he could look at her, at her liquid blue-green eyes and her slightly damp, red cheeks. "I just may be," he agreed with a rakish grin. 

If he intended to say any more, he couldn't because he was cut off there, by Kasumi gently pressing her lips against his . . . she was kissing him gently, tenderly, but passionately at the same time as though she was expressing her jumble of emotions through her kisses. Her lips were salty from her tears and sweet from watermelon, and Hiroshi revelled in the way she tasted, and one thought floated through his mind.

__

Oh my God, the girl can kiss.

An obnoxiously loud wolf whistle sounded from someone - Shigeru, most likely, as he embodied the spirit of obnoxious - and Hiroshi responded to the challenge by wrapping his arms around Kasumi's waist tighter and swinging her down so she was lying back supported only by his arms. He kissed her again and more whistles sounded, in appreciation of Hiroshi's very debonair, very Clark Gable-Elvis-Presley move.

The kiss broke when Kasumi broke into laughter, apparently unable to ignore the charmingly childish encouragement of her friends. Grinning broadly, so broad his face was in danger of cracking, Hiroshi pulled her upright again. 

"You know, I meant what I said . . . or sang," he said, the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice. 

"Yeah?" Kasumi responded. "Does that mean I have to sing a song to tell you how I feel? Because I was trying to think of one."

"How about that one by the Nine Inch Nails?" Shigeru suggested helpfully. "You know, 'I wanna fu-"

Satoshi's hand clapped over his mouth. 

Kasumi concealed a smirk.

"Ah," she said, looking at Shigeru almost fondly. "Some things never change."

Hiroshi rested his chin on the top of Kasumi's head. "And then some things do change," he commented. "For the better."

"For the better," Kasumi echoed. 

Satoshi winked at Hiroshi. "Yeah, for the better."

Hiroshi almost laughed at loud at Satoshi's way smooth impersonation of subtlety. He pulled away from Kasumi and took her hand in his. "Want to go for a walk?"

She eyed her guests speculatively. "Think they'll mind?"

Hiroshi shrugged carelessly, grinned and pulled Kasumi towards the back gate. "Who cares if they do?"

Kasumi seemed to agree with this and the two disappeared. As the gate clicked shut behind them, Satoshi let his hand fall from Shigeru's mouth. 

"Think it's for the better?" Takeshi asked, who was pretty smart and had noticed the change in Hiroshi's attitude. 

"Oh, yeah," Shigeru said with quiet certainty, looking towards the direction that Hiroshi and Kasumi had left. "Definitely. For both of them."

Unbeknownst to Hiroshi and Kasumi, who were halfway to wherever, Shigeru led the other guests in a toast. 

"To changes for the better," he said lifting his glass. The other guests followed suit, lifting, drinking in unison. 

Satoshi grinned. "And to getting the girl."

Takeshi nodded in agreement, lifted his glass. "I'll drink to that."

END


End file.
